The Income Tax department has chargesheeted former Union Minister P Chidambaram’s son Karti Chidambaram, his daughter in law Srinidhi and wife Nalini under the Black Money Act.
The chargesheets have been filed under Section 50 of the Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) and Imposition of Tax Act, 2015. The main charge against the family is their failure, in part or full, to disclose assets in the United Kingdom and the United States.
According to the chargesheet, Karti, Srinidhi and Nalini have not disclosed information about investments in a property in Cambridge, UK as well as investments/beneficial ownership in Totus Tennis Limited and NanoHoldings LLC, which constitutes an offence under Section 50 of the Black Money Act.
The Cambridge property refers to an immovable property at No.5, Holben Close, Barton, Cambridge CB23 7AQ, United Kingdom, reportedly acquired by the Chidambarams in 2015 for Rs 5.37 crore.
Investigations by the Income Tax Department also revealed that Karti Chidambaram had made investments to the tune of Rs 3.28 crore and Rs 80 lakh in Nano Holdings LLC, USA and in Totus Tennis Limited, UK respectively, through his domestic company Chess Global Advisory Services Private Limited.
Both these investments, the I-T departments states, have not been filed under the Return of Income by these individuals nor the firm. The Income Tax Department has issued notices to the the trio to assess the total undisclosed foreign incomes and assets in these cases.
Responding to the chargesheet, the Chidambaram family has denied that any offence has been committed. With regard to the property in Cambridge, the family claims that they have disclosed income returns in 2016-2017 wherein a sum of Rs 96,92,229 was paid to the caretaker of the property. Adding that the investment was for Karti and his minor daughter, the family faults the Income Tax department for not having included bank charges.
With regard to Totus Tennis Ltd, the family claims that it is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chess Global Advisory Services and no investment has been made by the family in Totus Tennis Limited and therefore, the total investment is nil.
Even as earlier petitions filed by the family were dismissed by the Madras High Court, Friday's chargesheets have been filed at the Court of the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Chennai. The matter has been posted for hearing on June 11.